Search underway for Marine who fell out of Osprey

The Marine who fell from an Osprey Monday night during training has been identified as a crew chief.

Thomas Brennan - Thomas.Brennan@JDNews.com

Updated at 2:49 p.m.

The Marine who fell from an Osprey Monday night during training has been identified as a crew chief.

Bladen Sheriff's Office and Bladen EMS are on scene as well as North Carolina Parks, North Carolina Forestry, N.C. Highway Patrol and White Lake Fire Department. One hundred Marines recently arrived to help with the search.

The search, officials said, is mainly a land search though they will also search in the lakes in the area.

The command post is in White Lake.

Civilians have been conducting the ground operations while the U.S. Marine Corps has been mainly doing aerial reconnaissance of the area.

Marine officials say the Corps will continue with the search until the Marine is found.

There are currently 1,000 Marines on standby from Camp Lejeune and New River if they are needed.

"It will be a progressive search focusing on accountability," said Lt. Hector Alejandro, media officer for 2nd Marine Air Wing based out of Cherry Point.

Alejandro said the search will follow the flight path, which consists of a multiple kilometers.

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A search in Bladen and Sampson counties was scheduled to resume this morning for a Marine who officials say fell out of an Osprey during training this week.

A Marine spokesman told multiple media outlets that the Marine fell out of the aircraft during a routine training mission around 7 p.m. Monday.

The Osprey is based out of New River Air Station. The Marine has not been identified.

A source close to the investigation, who is not authorized to speak to the media and is, therefore, not being identified, said the Marine who fell out of the Osprey was an instructor with one of the training commands. Public affairs officials with 2nd Marine Air Wing confirmed the missing Marine was with a training command but would not identify the command nor the Marine's role in that command.